Japan’s illiberal secrecy law

The threat of merely screaming

PUBLIC demonstrations in Japan are some of the free world’s most orderly and also some of the most heavily policed. On November 26th, as the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) pushed a controversial secrecy bill through the lower house of the Diet, your correspondent walked by a line of protesters sitting calmly outside the building, holding signs against the proposed law. The nearest thing to violence was one middle-aged woman with a megaphone pumping a fist and chanting.

That makes it stranger still that in a blog post on November 29th, three days after the lower house passed the bill, Shigeru Ishiba, the LDP’s secretary-general and the party’s number-two, compared the people protesting against the new law to terrorists. Some of the demonstrations have been sizeable—one, on November 21st in central Tokyo, numbered in the thousands, but many of the protesters that day were elderly and as their march reached the Diet buildings they lowered their banners in obedience to orders from the police. Nonetheless, “the tactic of merely screaming is in essence little different from acts of terrorism”, wrote Mr Ishiba on his blog. Amid a storm of criticism he quickly softened his stance. Noisy demonstrations alone, he clarified in a speech on December 1st, do not constitute terrorism.

Yet the damage is done. Not only is the ruling party’s illiberal attitude made plain, but Mr Ishiba’s comment only adds to worries about broad scope of the secrecy bill, which is expected to clear the upper house of parliament this week. It will hand out ten-year prison sentences to those who give away state secrets in four areas: in defence, diplomacy, counter-espionage and counter-terrorism. It is vaguely worded and there is little safeguard against the likelihood of too much information being secreted away from the public. “Thanks Mr Ishiba! Now we know how protesters against the powers-that-be will be treated once the secrecy bill passes,” tweeted Taro Yamamoto, an opposition politician. Mr Ishiba’s reaction also raises anew the question of whether the bill might in future be used to stop anti-nuclear protests against restarting Japan’s nuclear power plants—which the government regards as possible targets for terrorist attacks.

The main opposition party, the Democratic Party of Japan, along with the Japan Restoration Party and five other parties all attacked Mr Ishiba’s comment, as “outrageous verbal abuse”. The definition of terrorism contained in the bill that passed, they noted, is too vague. Shinzo Abe, the prime minister and the main architect of the bill, which he says will strengthen national security, is already feeling the weight of the law’s unpopularity. The approval rate for his cabinet has fallen below 50% for the first time since he took office in December 2012, according to a poll published by the Asahi Shimbun, a newspaper, on December 1st. It now stands at 49%, down from 53% in the previous survey. Mr Ishiba’s comments will not help.

' Japanese rightists politicians and government officials are notorious in how obnoxious, corrupt and mad they really are . Not only do they steal from the public purse to spend on whoring and sadomasochism, they are usually in cahoots with organized crime.

Little have changed for the ordinary Japanese people who have to put up with the lies, crimes and oppression from the ruling class in Japan which puts Japan as being socially the most backward feudal society in the world.

Japan are full of terrorists like Shigeru Ishiba who knows everything about brute power much like his ancestors who raped everywhere in Asia during past Japanese war of conquests. The only way to deal with this fascists nuts is to neuter them like the two atomic bombs dropped in 1945.' ??
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that may be well said, but the real danger of these people is not the threat they posed to the peace of Asian nations, but the ultimate harm they may do to fellow ordinary japns people.

militarism did japns people in once, the now resurging militarism is prone to bring calamitous tragedy to japns people all over again. only that no one will be as benevolent, merciful and forgiving to japns people as the us led allied victors of ww2 once did the next time around.

Japan’s illiberal secrecy law have two purposes. One is to cover up crimes committed by Japanese politicians and government officials like misappropriation of public funds, bribe taking, association with the Yakuza, scandalous behaviour including whoring and raping. The other is to allow Japanese politicians and government officials to mislead and lie to the Japanese public with impunity like the Fukushima nuclear pollution problem. Japanese society is now undergoing a transformation that will solidify the society into a dark age where the government is no longer accountable to the citizens. Mr. Abe and the LDP are fascists and terrorists.

As an American I believe that Japanese fascism should be stopped in the tracks. One of the guarantees for peace that Japan provided was the "Peace Constitution" which under the right-wing fascists government of Mr. Abe is increasingly threatened. Another problem is the Okinawa problem which was annexed by a rampaging japan in 1872. Okinawans were never part of Japan proper for 200 years. In Japan continues on the path of fascism, Okinawa should become independent and not become another hapless victim like during the 1945 Battle of Okinawa in which a quarter of the civilian population died.

' Now lets watch the comments fill with hate for Japan and its history '
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for what japan has had done during ww2 and even now, your worry is justified.
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japns history is a but branch of Chinese civilization that veered off course during ww2. and Kyoto was and is a copy of Tang dynasty city that got preserved. (it's official record that china had actually advised American bombers during ww2 where not to bomb including Kyoto).
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I love japan and japns people like I do others on earth, I hate the fact that it has become necessary for the peace loving world to keep japan chained as it does as a vassal state thanks to its resurging militarism.
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there's no need for japan to apologize, but japns people themselves must repent nation wide deep down internally, before it's too late.

I couldn't agree with you more. As a Taiwanese I can appreciate the pain and injustice of brutal suppression of Okinawan local people from the Japanese aggression forces even though I was born well after Taiwan's reversion back to China.

Many Okinawans, women and children, were murdered by Japanese army who cowardly hided behind civilians and forced them to jump cliffs or otherwise commit mass suicide upon advances of American force during World War Two. Even today, Okinawans are treated as second class citizens in Japan and Japanese government is still trying to repress and silence their independence movement now in progress.

Okinawa must be liberated from Japan to become independent once more if there's any justice left in the world order hard won upon Nazi Germany's and fascist Japan's unconditional surrender.

I totally agree. Whay happened in Fukushima plant was a shock to me. So many people were forced to relocate abandoning the place they lived for decades and hardly anybody complained. Although I appreciate Japanese civil order and considerations for others but there comes a time when you have to voice your opinions. Otherwise the government can lead the country to directions that the people do not want.

I do think and hope that most Japanese people adhere to liberal values and the falling ratings of Mr. Abe seem to indicate this. However I am not so sure if they would be ready to fight for them. Many people are so apathetic and civil society in Japan is not very strong, so they are lacking organisational power in the first place. The state mingles almost everywhere and if it isn't directly the state then it is some other form of social control. I think this BBC documentary gives a very good inside into Japanese society: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjqd3sIcfrY

Are demonstrations terro-attacks? Demonstrations are guaranteed by the constitution as the universal value of human rights, concretely the freedom of free speech and assembly. The universal value of human rights in Japan as a "should be" democratic country can never be negated. Unilaterally hawkish, insular and isolated Japan where despite a "should be" democratic country demonstrations are made terro-attacks can never survive around the e world. In reality, "some of the free world's most orderly and also some of the most heavily policed." Why policed? No freedom of assembly! Some of the free world's most orderly are exceptional. First and above all, the freedom of free speech and assembly!
r. Ishiba, a promoter the "illiberal" secrecy law, and Mr. Abe, an originator of it, are mad. Mr. Levin cited "Whom the gods would destroy, they make mad."

Well, if the government considers demonstrations to be acts of terrorism and the newly enacted law can enprison terrorists up to 10 years then we can see where this is all going. If you disagree with the government you go to prison for 10 years. Well done Abe.

During Fukushima nuclear catastrophe, the Japanese govt failed to explain where all those plutonium came from. And also why reactor #4 leaked radiation stuff after the earthquake when it was supposed to be down for maintenance, as according to the log book.

Some one said that this tension with China is driving the Japanese to build their nuclear bomb. Me thinks it's a fait acompli. However the Western media is not reporting on these developments wc have been going on for years; and they're helping to cover it up.

I will not be a demonstrator because of my age over 75. If I am a demonstrator in "some most heavily policed", I will be imprisoned under the "illiberal" secrecy law, and any other related law and administrative rules.

Absolutely! Abe, whose grandfather was war time prime minister and later judged as war criminal, aches to revive Japanese militarism. People of the world, and not just Americans, should make sure that dream is not realized.

In commemoration of the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor, Bloomberg.com's Lewis Laptham interviewed Eri Hotta, author of "Japan 1941: Countdown to Infamy," an eye opening book on the events that force Japan to take pre emptive action (ie. the containment effort vs Japan by US & UK during the 1930s & 1940s), and the psyche of the Japanese people that primed them for a wider war with the West. As of summer 1941, Japan only had 6 months of oil left. They felt they needed to attack first and to acquire oil in S.E Asia through war and aggression before oil is completely gone.

In his synopsis, Lewis mentioned the jubilation of the Japanese public upon hearing the successful bombing of Pearl Harbor. Specifically, many of the right wing militarists prostrated themselves on the ground, thanking Emperor Hirihito for the honor of serving Japan in battle. How much of that war thirsty culture still remains after 70 years of pacifism has yet to be manifested. But I for one don't want to be around to see it revealed once again!

Counter measures after Snowden disclosure. Withleblowers, discontents, truth caring journalists, critics, and more or less everybody who doesn't say yes when is called to jump, or tu use a recent example in the UK (Rusbridger interrogated by SS officials)if the govenment feels that you don't love enough your country. These are the targets of this kind of law. This law exists already in one or other form in the powerful countries. They are the defensors of democracy in terms of unquestioning compliance.

I was furious when your post which did not violate any TE comment code was somehow deleted by someone.
fortunately I have kept a copy as part of my response this time.

to err or to sin is human, but to commit beast like atrocities so massive in scale and still bullying and refuse to repent 70 years after the war is unforgivable and shockingly sinful and criminal.

just look at the youtube link provided by Ajay Singh above. were these japns still human back then?

today japan is finally sun setting for good because of being ageing and an occupied vassal state, may be japan deserves this as a nation, but the largely innocent ordinary japns people of today who are denied the truth of japns war crimes deserve better.

I am afraid mr abe government is taking away any chance of being good for japns people and I do hope the us will keep holding japan as a second class vassal state for at least another 70 years or as long as when japns truly repent and reform.